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As I lay here in the dark peace of night, I often wonder to myself if there’s something I did not do quite so right. A forgiving smile opens upon my heart and frees me from my mistakes- fore in seeing all that I have now… all that I have become… I can only wonder how I could regret such decisions that led to this end.

Live… learn… love… forgive… but do not regret the very endeavors that shaped you into who you are. Wear your achievements and your blunders upon your sleeves in equal pride and you will learn to accept all others, as to do so you will have truly accepted yourself.

~Fioza Leigh-Rhodes

(An excerpt from my novel Remus and Romulus)

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It’s the Meet and Greet weekend!! Ok so here are the rules: Leave a link to your page or post in the comments of this post. Reblog this post. It helps you, it helps me, it helps everyone! Edit your reblog post and add tags. Feel free to leave your link multiple times! It is […]

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With continued support and participation from readers, Creative Pool can become a fun and effortless way to get easy exposure in the WordPress community.

It’s as easy as:

1. Leave a link to your blog or one of your latest pieces below.

2. Like, comment, or follow others while you visit

3. Tadahh! You’ve gotten out there!

I know it takes a bit more time to engage in others’ posts while you visit but trust me– leaving a comment on another blogger’s page not only helps them to know what their community thinks of their work… it helps you by leaving a way for them to check out your blog as well.

So sit back, relax and stay a while as we help each other grow together as a community.

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Someone once told me that in the culture of the ancient Greeks, creativity was viewed as an outside force that comes to an individual.

Something about that statement brought a flood of emotions through me. Never before had I heard of the creative process described in such a manner- but I knew with absolute sureness that this was how I viewed my creativity as well.

In this day and age, it seems to me that we want to control our lives and our surroundings. Now this isn’t the case with everyone and every scenario, but many times I even find myself doing it. I plan every route, plan every job, plan every art piece.

But when I get in this state of mind, I no longer enjoy life. I’m no longer active in my own life- instead I become a witness.

The ongoing struggle of my artistic life- those stretches of the dreaded writer’s block- always come when I forget to listen.

Those days where I’m alone with my mind… When there’s no pressing issues or assignments to be addressed- I’m able to turn my focus inwards and truly get in touch with what’s going on with my characters. In a process much like meditation I must forget the assumptions I’ve made about them, forget the perfectly laid out plans I have, feel that inner sense of connectivity with the countless minds inside of me and truly listen.

So next time you’re alone, sit down with your characters and talk to them. You’d be surprised what they’ll tell you about themselves and what’s happening in their world.

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Sure beats the hospital!
Today I’d like to share my celebration of this wonderful man’s return home after a long battle with surgeries and cancer.

My grandpa, James Parker returned home from the hospital today after weeks of recovery and a major operation. Just weeks ago we shared a terrible discovery that he had developed a second kind of cancer (he already had battled another kind for around 10 years).

When we found out I was unable to hold it together. With the surgeon in the room and my whole family trying to be strong- the news I heard sounded like a death sentence and I lost it at the thought of loosing this wonderful soul from my life.

My grandpa on the other hand looked at me and quoted what I had told him when I was only a young girl. With a smile on his face he said “well you know what Jamie? Like a wise girl once told me… We’re just gonna have to deal with it”.

And what else could be said? Truly that is all we could do. You move on and deal with the things you’re dealt with, or you simply refuse to move. That’s all there is to it.

As a child, I don’t know if I was as wise as he thought I was, or if I didn’t truly understand the gravity of the situation. My grandfather on the other hand has showed me more strength and optimism out of one person than I could have ever believed possible… And is continuing to do so even in the face of Chemo and stage 3 cancer at the age of 78.

This man is my hero. The fact that he published a book and has always encouraged me to follow my dreams and given me countless words of advice and inspiration comes second to the frame of mind and lifestyle he has taught me throughout the years. I wouldn’t have half the optimism I have if it wasn’t for him.

If you have a hero like my Grandpa, please share in the comments below. I’d love to hear about the people that helped shape your lovely minds 🙂

~Keep on being positive and “dealing” with the roadblocks life throws you. We will be victorious ❤️

Us writers are blessed with a single body that we must rely on to express vast spaces with even more vast personalities… but that’s why we write.

For a long time, I got stuck on the idea of perfection. Unable to simply dump ideas and come back to them later, I edited as I wrote– scrutinized every word and stressed over every syllable. That is, until I found a quote from Pixar’s rules of storytelling:

“If it stays in your head, a perfect idea

You’ll never share it with anyone

~Pixar animation

After all… our words can’t reach a single soul or give a voice to our beloved characters if we never work to try.

So here’s my challenge to you. In a comment below geek out about a character! Whether they’re your original character or someone else’s, let go of the pressure and just have fun. Let us inspire one another and remind ourselves why we do what we do.

^Follow the link above to see the complete list of Pixar’s storytelling rules reblogged by Jared Keller and based off of Emma Coat’s 2012 tweets of wisdom gained from Pixar after years of working there.

This list has served as inspiration in the hardest of times throughout my years and I hope they can help you as well!

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“Shit” thought Aubrey. “Blood stained… bruised cat fur. That’s what it looks like” she decided looking at the skin on her arm absent mindedly for what must have been the fifth time since the sun came up that day. Twitching the muscles in her right hand, she waited for any response from her pointer finger- though the effort was fruitless. A thin drape of animal hides fell straight into the palm of her hand as the snow gusts outside blew the wall of the tent back to its rightful position. “How many times” she wondered, “can it look like that before it stops working”?

True, today was one of the better days. At least this time she had a delicate, dancing company from the baby fire in the corner furthest from where she laid. She sent out a mental plea for the fire to avert its face- as if to preserve its light. She stole a glance of warmth just before the body attempting to smash itself into hers shifted weight to get a better angle. She tilted her head back and resumed staring at the hole in the ceiling to avoid the wall of stench that had threatened to fill her nostrils. A few more awkward movements and the man was finished. Back to pulling up his wolf skin trousers. Back to tidying up the wrinkles and erasing the evidence. Back to his day like he had just taken nothing more than a food break.

“Thanks lady” the man slobbered, rubbing his sweaty cheek against hers. “Or should I say lentleman” the man laughed as he grabbed the penis- awkward and out of place dangling between her legs. Aubrey winced as Wolf Trousers turned his back and walked out of the tent confronting the icy tundra. A deafening silence flooded into the room as the door flapped shut, thickening with each breath and threatening to choke her. She was aware of her golden, messed locks of hair dreading beneath spit in her mouth. Even more, she was aware of the warmth streaming in small springs down her cheeks to the sides of her face– and yet, she felt nothing… heard nothing… said nothing. When had she stopped feeling, she wondered? Had she ever felt at all?

***This is the beginning excerpt of one of my novels, Aubrey. The picture is also an original concept sketch of her. Please let me know… is this put too profanely? I suppose I don’t write about things this graphic often so I’d love some feedback 🙂 ***

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For the pure joy of it I believe. So why then does writing often become an overbearing sense of work and responsibility even for the most passionate of writers?

Brain says: You’re a writer for God’s sake Fioza! You MUST get these ideas out of your head. It’s not enough to keep them inside.

Body: acknowledges the truth in this statement… but continues watching T.V.

We can all relate to some degree, yes? That paralyzing fear. You don’t realize it’s there at first. You give yourself a break and excuse the familiar writer’s block on something more conveniently faced. But time passes swiftly and sooner or later you have to face the facts.

“If I try… I might fail.”

…but if I try, I might succeed. Why is it that most times when we human beings speculate, we gravitate towards the worst of scenarios?

Well, I don’t know about you guys but I want to break this cycle. I miss the days before I went to school for what I love– The days where my passion was not also my work.

I’ve started Talking to Myselves to help not only myself but hopefully you as well. I’m on a journey– a journey to reconnect with my childhood self– a self full of wonder and excitement. A self full of stories and characters so loving they kept me company when no one else would. A journey to give my inner family the voice they deserve.

Showing up is the hardest part I believe. So this is me showing up. This is me, spewing words and strings of consciousness in hopes that by holding myself accountable I can once again be in touch with the hundreds of characters left lying in my head. And hopefully, my journey can be an inspiration to you to help you to do the same.